Motivation, leadership style and performance management Essay

Motivation, leadership style and performance management - Essay Example This essay is structured in different sections, with each section dealing with one factor of crucial influence on performance. The first section discusses the various theories of motivation including the works of Maslow (1943), Alderfer (1972), McClelland (1955) and evaluates the impact of motivation on the group’s performance. The second section discusses theories of leadership by XYZ, and assesses the impact of leadership style on the performance of our group. The third section of the essay covers performance measurement as the factor that impacts on the team performance. The final section of this essay covers my conclusions and the recommendations that can help in better performance management. The first factor that I intend to relate to performance of team is motivation. Motivation has been one of the most studied and discussed topics relevant to performance. According to one of the oldest and most popular theories of motivation, motivation is the result of drives or needs that human beings have. For example, Maslow’s Theory of Hierarchy of Needs (1943) states that there are several stages of needs, like the basic needs for food, shelter and security; social needs related to feeling a sense of belongingness or affection, status and self-esteem needs, and self-actualization needs. As a person is able to fill his lower order needs, the higher order needs become operant and motivate him. See Figure 1 below: Figure 1: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory (Source: Maslow, 1943). Another version of the derive theory is that proposed by Alderfer (1972), which segregates these needs into only three categories – ERG or existence, Relatedness and Growth needs. According to Alderfer (1972), all three types of needs can be operational at the same time. Similarly, a theory of need is proposed by McClelland (1955), which states that people are motivated by different needs and the prominent need defines what factors may motivate them. For example , according to McClelland (1955), people who have a high need for achievement are motivated by challenging tasks and lofty objectives, while people who have a high need for affiliation are motivated by opportunities that furnish them with more social interactions or recognition. Need for power is high in people who are motivated to obtain positions of high status and power. These theories root the basis of motivation into an internal need of the person. In contrast to these theories, theories like that of Vroom (1964), consider the external rewards and expectations as the driving forces for motivation and performance. Vroom’s theory states that people gauge if their efforts are capable of getting them the desired performance, and if the performance outcome can lead them to their goals or rewards. This means that there are basically two aspects to motivation one is the expectations of a link between effort and performance, and the other a direct link between the performance an d rewards. Another essential aspect of motivation according to this theory is the desirability of the reward or the expected value of the reward. People are motivated to expend the effort only if the reward has value for them. As such, motivation according to this theory is a product of: Motivation = Expectancy X Instrumentality X Valence Where, Expectancy is expectation that the effort leads to performance Instrumentality is the perception that the performance will be instrumental in attaining the reward Valence is the value of the reward for the person In addition, motivation can be both extrinsic, as in the case where rewards and incentives are the motivating factors, and intrinsic, where the person wants to fulfil an internal need –

International and Comparative Relations Essay Example for Free

International and Comparative Relations Essay As the number of hired workers in companies raises so are the Human Resources Managers facing more challenges as they need to maintain a competitive edge in their business both at home and abroad. Chinas entry into the World Trade Organization created fresh opportunities which resulted to some firms retreating and others expanding (Bamber, Lansbury Wailes, 2004), making the entry of foreign firms to be faced by challenges than it was in the 1970s and thus even the HR managers are in for a challenge since they have to carefully know how to tackle the culture of post-WTO China so as to have an effective HRM systems. According to Lucas (2004) it is important to understand the HRM challenges facing foreign firms in China and how to overcome them. According to information given by interviewees, who included senior managers and private equity specialists, it was discovered that the Western model of HRM may not solve the challenges. Firms had to come out with ideas on how to manage human resources in response to the changing environment in China. To know how the firms were doing this, interviews were conducted rather than survey instrument (Deery Mitchell, 1999). After the interviews it was noted that the strategies of the HR in China differed from those of the West. For instance one of the HR process in China is selection of people they want to work in their companies. Some private successful firms wanted young people who are from school others selected people who do not drink or smoke. While firms really wanted to remove redundant employees in their companies, some of the managers that were interviewed said that there was benefit â€Å"organized† over-staffing. Again in the issue of employee contribution; to encourage employee contribution there had to be change of mentality like their association of mistakes with penalties. It was noted that many employees in the foreign firms were afraid to do anything outside their job description thus the HRM policies were encouraged to aim at helping these employees. There was also the issue of training programs in which they should also teach about what is wrong and its solution.  Ã‚   One way of helping these employees according to (Verma, Kochan Lansbury, 1995) was to train them well in their jobs so as to extend even beyond their job description. This however has to be encouraged through creation of friendly environment involvement in risk taking. There is also another problem of lack of ground rules that are well-established which results to interference with the operations. Some individuals have the power to stop some industries from operating. The foreign firms thus need to know the relevant person in that location. The HR has the role to select well-connected people in management team (Morgenstern, 1984). Even in some companies they need the individuals they want to hire for their jobs to have connections with government bodies or powerful individuals so as they can link them in case of a problem. The HR also plays the role of â€Å"change agent† (Blanpain, Lansbury Park, 2002) where they help firms implement new programs, improve processes and transform positively the organizations culture. Employment relationship is vital as the employers need to have good relationship with their existing employees as well as their new ones so as to avoid problems at the place of works hence increasing workplace productivity. This however can be complex as sometimes the employees can find the rules set by the employers quite challenging. As human the way we choose to control our goal maybe different from what the organization wants. The organization needs people who can interact with others to be productive to the company. The employment relation constitutes of three sides that is the employers, employees and the law. In addition there are employment rights.   In different countries and cities we have different way of treating employees and companies also have got different policies. Employment relationships are faced by challenges such as competitive pressures, technological change as this may result to either the employer seeking new employees who have got the most updated technological skills or requiring the old employees to update their skill by going back to class of which other will not welcome the idea, changing of owns behaviors; this may lead to disappointment to either party. As time goes by the employee-employer relationship changes. This according to Blanpain, Lansbury Park (2002) can be brought about by societal, organizational or individual changes. From the society point of view changes in the relationship is as a result developments in our society for example the cultural norms influence and the values that are related to exchanges. The organization together with the employee composes the second and third sources of changes in employment relationship. The organization and the employer both are part of the society and are both influenced by the same structural factors and dynamic change processes. However they still have some differences as the desires of the organization and those of the employee may not necessarily converge. For instance the organization may require organizational flexibility to cope with the competitiveness. Similarly the employee desire and expectations of the organization may change for example an employee with a family probably with small children will want the employers flexibility to provide good balance between his job and his private life as an important issue. There seems as if the traditional labor laws are less effective in determining the employment relationships in many countries (Dickens Neal, 2006). The pressure for flexibility in firms has led to changes in the employment relations. These changes have been linked to societal factors. In 1999-2000, twenty-seven Dutch Organization (Bach, 1999) a questionnaire was distributed to groups of employees. The data that was gathered from a sample that represented the working population showed that the younger and older employee was underrepresented and there was over representation of people between 25 and 44 years. This is a contradiction to the Chinese authority who wanted younger people. The questionnaires also assessed individual characters, employee obligations toward the company and employer obligation toward the employee. It was noted that most employees aired out their opinions on several issues affecting them and they were thinking beyond their jobs. This is unlike in China where due to fear of intimidation employees were afraid to air out their opinions. A comparative study of employment systems in the US and Japan was achieved by use of game-theoretic framework (Rapra Technology Limited, 2005) here the employment system was seen as an equilibrium outcome of interactions among management, labor, and government. In both countries, the relations evolved from ones associated with short-term contracts and company-wide employee representation. While Japan continued in the same path, the U.S experienced a breakdown of implicit contract during the Great Depression (Mortimer Leece, 1994). It is important to study internationally comparative employment relations so as to contribute to our knowledge about the employment relations in other countries and also to provide model for the development of policy. Due to globalization, there is increased economic connectedness hence the need to learn about employment relations practices in other countries. In addition it also helps with theory construction. International comparison requires acceptance of reference point. Employment relations in Britain as accordance to Jenkins (2000) was characterized with formation of unions which marked a big growth up until the World War II when due to a rising number in unemployment the membership of the unions declined. This was also caused by part-time jobs and concentration in the private sector where unions found it hard to recruit. Unlike most other   Western European countries, Britain (Sparrow Cooper, 2003)has one main union confederation that is the Trades Union Congress(TUC) that was established in 1868.Between 1980 and 1990 private sector firms membership of employers associations fell sharply before it started to rise again slightly in the 1990s. The state plays a very important role in employment relations either directly and/or indirectly. The changing pattern of employment relation in Britain reflects some trends which may include de-industrialization, proportion increase in services and growth of a typical employment. Employment relation in United States of America can be started in 1930s (Stuart Martinez- Lucio, 2005) when the US unions first arose as a seemingly permanent force. Between 1940-1950 the unions grew tremendously and in 1960s and 1970s transformed government employment into sector with strong unions. Employers organizations in USA are relatively unimportant and unlike in other countries there have not been any employers confederations. By 1985 the depth of union membership crisis was acknowledged and new forms of employee participation appeared in some workplaces. Though in the early 1990s there was a strong economic recovery (Bender Theodossiou, 1996), there was growing polarisation in employees labor market experiences. By 2000 the pressures from globalisation increased. The non-union sector has marked a tremendous growth in spite of the labour laws being enforced. REFERENCES Almond, P Ferner, A 2006, American multinationals in Europe: managing employment    relations across national borders, Oxford University Press, Melbourne   Bach, S 1999, Public Service Employment Relations in Europe: Transformation, Modernization    Or Inertia?, Routledge Bamber, G, Lansbury, R Wailes, N 2004, International and Comparative Employment   Ã‚   Relations: Globalisation and the Developed Market Economies, 4th ed, SAGE, Boca Raton,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   FL Bender, K Theodossiou, I 1996, International Comparisons of the Real Wage-employment    Relationship, University of Aberdeen Blanpain, R, Lansbury, R Park, Y 2002, The Impact of Globalisation on Employment

Issues of Survival :: Essays Papers

Issues of Survival â€Å"We will only change if we survive, but we will only survive unless we change.† I believe that the Dalai Lama, in his book Ethics for a New Millennium, discusses many issues pertaining to the current state of our society that are of dyer importance if we hope to survive into the next few generations. Primarily, I am referring to his discussion of happiness as it relates to inner peace, the acknowledgement of universal responsibility, and the need to educate our children responsibly, inside and outside of the classroom. The Dalai Lama makes the assertion that, as humans, we are all ultimately searching for happiness. The way we can become truly happy is by acknowledging that, â€Å"the principal characteristic of genuine happiness is peace: inner peace.† (55) We can achieve this inner peace by putting others needs on the same plane as our own needs and by recognizing that our own well-being is intimately attached to that of others. I believe this is crucial to our survival. By raising others needs to a level of our own, we are acknowledging that they are an asset to our lives and equally contribute to the human family. This, in my mind, guarantees them the universal rights of food, water, shelter, education, health services, and safety. We are improving our own lives when we lift up the lives of others. Whether one believes in karma or not, it is true that we feel a positive emotion after thinking of or helping others. â€Å"The impact of our actions—both positive and negative—register deep within us.† (88) That is why we need to continue to think of others well-being; it lifts our spirits and helps us achieve inner peace. True inner peace and happiness cannot be achieved, in my opinion, without the acceptance of the Dalai Lama’s ideas of universal responsibility. My thoughts regarding this are based off the idea that we can never be truly happy while there is human (or environmental) suffering. If it is true happiness for which we are searching, we have a responsibility to everyone’s happiness.

Group Project for Strategic Management

We all know what SOOT stands for in the business world. There are the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. In a business the management leaders need to be aware of the surroundings for any ideas that may come their way and to be developed and planned out to make a profit and to hold the stakeholders to help make a difference. Apple is in the design, marketing, and development of personal computers and software. Apple is also into digital music players, network solutions, and related accessories (King, 2009).In researching the Apple Corporation, they have a very long history and although they had many changes from when they first started working out of a garage as a bobby they have definitely come a long way. Strengths First of all their strength Is In their technology. They have low debt and brand loyalty, they collaborated with Intel Computers in 2006, and they have a Strong Research & Development Department. Everything in this category is good because it is strong and assures for a good future. Weaknesses Their weaknesses are more compelling than one might think.They are weak in relationship with Intel and Microsoft, a weak presence in the business arena, a weak presence in markets other than education and publishing, and a slow turn around on high demand products. This does not look good for any business. The reasoning behind this category is If they do not make a turnaround, they are going to lose more customers and their sales will go down and their future will look bleak. Opportunities Their opportunities are their online sales of computers are Increasing with rapid speed; Apple Computers should focus to develop new models to cater to the need of customers.Their downloaded music for MPH players Is very marketable. That means more money for them and their colleagues. Threats Now Tort tenet tenants, ten apple steward Ana tenet cell phones are very expensive compared to other companies. The competition is strong and Apple does not look like the y will catch up to them in the laptop division. For their downloaded music, people would prefer going to other sources to download free music instead of paying for it, so that does not look good for their tunes.Introducing the MINI COME CARRYALL Our computers will be less expensive and small enough to fit in a purse or fanny pack; it will also have mini discs. Let everyone know this company the new revelation in technology as the Mini Come Carryall, MAC for short. The plan is to set out to provide a new Marketing product, a new and improved computer with a new kind of footwear. Noticing that Apple has a problem with relationships with Intel and Microsoft tells us that they either do not trust them or they think they are mind readers.This computer company wants to be there for everyone. We can make the computer business better by making a change. The best way to go about acknowledging what another company has is by researching. This company has found that Apple had gotten ideas from the fruit but not making an effort to comply with how to make it work. We will have a review of current measures by the measurement team to determine if they support the indicators if it does, then that ATA needs to organize the strategic measures (Wells, 2003).We will have the Marketing staff going to events all around the United States and having them set up a place to test to see what the customers like and dislike. However, like everything else there are always the pros and cons in strategies. Pros The benefits of globalization has resulted in companies looking for new ways of doing business, learning new techniques, affecting the software manufacturing process, and making funds available for global initiatives (Rumanians, 2010). Our computers will be less expensive and small enough to fit in a purse or fanny pack; it ill also have mini discs.Let this company be known and the Mini Come Carryall, MAC for short. After the person have finished using or playing or anything with the computer, they fill out a survey answering the questions, how simple is the software that was Just tried and how they liked it, and what did they like most or least about it, and what are their thoughts on the new product and would they buy it? This is simple but yet affective. The strategy that this computer company has come up with is very simple; we have a plan to be there for the customer, to talk to our partners on weekly basis, and to have meetings once a month.The people that we hire for Data input will have the knowledge for the computer system. There will be internal and external audits every week. We will also get rid of the overhead so our products will be better and less expensive. The opinions of a potential customer are worth more as a strategic plan than not advertising. The data processor will then input the numbers or letters into the system, then the results will be more tangible and more realistic and the numbers will be a true number to have a better outcome and to sell ore AT ten product .Free downloads Trot our Wesley wall make sure customers keep coming back. Cons As for the cons, many things can happen to where it will seem that it is a bad idea or plan. For example, not enough money but if the management plans it right they will be able to rent cars and save money for the trip. Another thing is not be motivated and not hiring the right people. Some people might not like advertising in public, having a new market that they are unsure about with little or no training. Not having the right vendors is a waste of time and money. Buyers are being more cautious about investing.Not being in touch with the stakeholders and managers and not letting them know what is happening in the world of computers and software. Conclusion This paper has shown that the research about Apple Inc. With a SOOT analysis and pros and cons are more likely to happen if management is not sure of a plan. This paper also introduced a new market in a mini computer. Strat egic planning is a source of having the right tools and the right people to make new marketing ideas work for the company. Making the right choice of vendors will save time and money for going global.

Vocation paper Autosaved

That is where this article leads us and provides direction on what that means to us in our everyday spiritual lives. I will speak to my vocation(s) and how my calling from God relates to my education and my life in general. A call that I have received is the call to live in a family. God has provided me with a husband and two children. Together my husband and I are in charge of bringing our children up in the Lutheran faith and showing them how to live in a God pleasing way.My husband and I have taken vows to be faithful and loving to each other and show our children what it means to submit to another. We show them honor to God by going to church. My family has now expanded to include my school family and all those I will come into intact with along my educational journey. The call to work makes you think of your job that you go to everyday. This call is so much more than that. It really means that you put God in everything you do. It States in the article that Christianity values th e material world because God created it and saw that it was good.My decision to come to Wisconsin Lutheran for school was a personal one and provides me with both spiritual growth and intellectual growth. There has been a lot of discussion lately regarding the division of church and state. â€Å"Government leaders function with the natural law that the Lord embedded in their consciences to make them better leaders. † God knows that all people are sinners and we need to be protected from those sins, so he provides police officers, judges and soldiers.We as citizens have a responsibility to protect what God Vocation Stirrer 3 has provided for us and help others with this responsibility. We pray for our government as well as pay taxes. The article says â€Å"Give to Caesar what is Career's, and to God, what is God's. We show support for government and government shows support to our religious affiliations, but they are separate entities that have specific jobs to do. We have no choice to be in the world. We are born into it by God's grace and we are expected to do the best we can to live a Godly life while experiencing the benefits of what God has created for us.I believe this section of the article is speaking of not allowing the material things of this world to distract us from the true calling that we have received. We all have a purpose and we should be grateful to God for anything he has provided for us, not always expecting or wanting more. This section also ties into the next three sections of the article. Christians have a responsibility to carry certain burdens, to endure hardships and to be handful for those hardships. We also have a responsibility to not hide our faith but to share it with others joyfully and graciously.

Free Essays on Individual-Group Continuity In Cooperation And Competition Under Varying Communication Conditions

TERM PAPER IN SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY INDIVIDUAL-GROUP CONTINUITY IN COOPERATION AND COMPETITION UNDER VARYING COMMUNICATION CONDITIONS ABSTRACT A 2 (Individuals / Groups) X 2 (Communication / No communication) ten-trial Prisoner’s Dilemma Game (PDG) study examined effects of repeated communications on the so-called discontinuity effect: the observation that intergroup PDG interactions are more competitive than interindividual PDG interactions. Inconsistent with the discontinuity hypothesis, but consistent with goal-expectation theory, results indicated that repeated communications increased cooperation to an equal extent for individuals and groups; and that groups had stronger cooperative expectations of, and attributed less competitiveness to their opponent, than individuals. Findings suggest an individual-group continuity effect, rather than a discontinuity effect, within the context of repeated PDG interactions and communications between individuals and groups. INTRODUCTION Groups have a bad reputation, even leading to half-jokingly comments by some authors that ‘humans would do better without groups’ (Buys 1978). Once individuals are submerged in a group, they seem to transform from a Dr. Jekyll into a Mr. Hyde and are driven by the lowest impulses and instincts (LeBon 1895). Only as single individuals, they would act in a civilized, cool, calm, and collected way. In his discussion of mass phenomena, Brown (1954) described this discrepancy between individual and group behavior as an ‘apparent discontinuity’, suggesting that individuals submerged in groups are more antisocial, domineering, deceitful, hostile, aggressive and competitive compared to isolated individuals. In their program of research on this ‘individual-group discontinuity hypothesis’ -the name was borrowed from Brown's (1954) discussion- Insko, Schopler, and colleagues give strong evidence for the negative image of the social group sketched above... Free Essays on Individual-Group Continuity In Cooperation And Competition Under Varying Communication Conditions Free Essays on Individual-Group Continuity In Cooperation And Competition Under Varying Communication Conditions TERM PAPER IN SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY INDIVIDUAL-GROUP CONTINUITY IN COOPERATION AND COMPETITION UNDER VARYING COMMUNICATION CONDITIONS ABSTRACT A 2 (Individuals / Groups) X 2 (Communication / No communication) ten-trial Prisoner’s Dilemma Game (PDG) study examined effects of repeated communications on the so-called discontinuity effect: the observation that intergroup PDG interactions are more competitive than interindividual PDG interactions. Inconsistent with the discontinuity hypothesis, but consistent with goal-expectation theory, results indicated that repeated communications increased cooperation to an equal extent for individuals and groups; and that groups had stronger cooperative expectations of, and attributed less competitiveness to their opponent, than individuals. Findings suggest an individual-group continuity effect, rather than a discontinuity effect, within the context of repeated PDG interactions and communications between individuals and groups. INTRODUCTION Groups have a bad reputation, even leading to half-jokingly comments by some authors that ‘humans would do better without groups’ (Buys 1978). Once individuals are submerged in a group, they seem to transform from a Dr. Jekyll into a Mr. Hyde and are driven by the lowest impulses and instincts (LeBon 1895). Only as single individuals, they would act in a civilized, cool, calm, and collected way. In his discussion of mass phenomena, Brown (1954) described this discrepancy between individual and group behavior as an ‘apparent discontinuity’, suggesting that individuals submerged in groups are more antisocial, domineering, deceitful, hostile, aggressive and competitive compared to isolated individuals. In their program of research on this ‘individual-group discontinuity hypothesis’ -the name was borrowed from Brown's (1954) discussion- Insko, Schopler, and colleagues give strong evidence for the negative image of the social group sketched above...

Curanderismo in South America essays

Curanderismo in South America essays The strong beliefs in the supernatural is recognized to the pagan religious practices and the integration of beliefs that were instilled by the Conquistadors in their quest to convert the natives to Catholicism. Because of the conquest by the Spaniards and their settlement in South and Central America, there were intermarriages between the natives and Spaniards. This created the race referred to as the mestizos or, in the U.S., Chicanos. Their beliefs and religious practices have survived through the generations. However, the belief in folk illnesses and curanderismo does not usually deter anyone, whether Hispanic or Native American, to seek conventional health care. None the less, supernaturalism concerning curanderismo and witchcraft is a large part of the intriguing history of the natives and Hispanics of the Southwest. A curandero is a healer. Curanderos help treat personal things that cant be healed without having faith. The word derives from the Spanish verb, curar; which means to heal. Many Mexican Americans believe in the curanderos power of healing and visit a curandero when they are sick or having family problems. Even though medical doctors are available, many Mexican Americans still choose to see a curandero in times of illness. Unfortunately, some people seek a curandero because they have little or no money to see a doctor or have no health insurance. Although known to be good some curanderos tend to take advantage of the needy. Poor who have no money and that is unfortunate, a curandero works on one or more of the three levels of healing. These three levels include the material, the spiritual and the material. There are six major historical influences that have shaped the beliefs and practices of curanderismo. The first influence is the Judeo and Christian religious beliefs, symbols and rituals. The second is early Arabic medicine and health practices. The third is medieval and European witchcraft. The fourth influ...

Explanation and Chart of Ser Versus Estar

Explanation and Chart of Ser Versus Estar There are few things more confusing for beginning Spanish students than learning the differences between ser and estar. After all, they both mean to be in English. Differences Between Ser and Estar One way to think of the differences between ser and estar  is to think of ser as the passive verb and estar as the active one. (The terms arent being used in a grammatical sense here.) Ser tells you what something is, the nature of its being, while estar refers more to what something does. You might use soy (the first-person present of ser, meaning I am) to explain who or what you are, but youd use estoy (the first-person present of estar) to tell what you are being or doing. For example, you might say, Estoy enfermo for I am sick. That would indicate that you are sick at the moment. But it doesnt tell anyone what you are. Now if you were to say, Soy enfermo, that would have a different meaning entirely. That would refer to who you are, to the nature of your being. We might translate that as I am a sick person or I am sickly. Note similar differences in these examples: Estoy cansado. (I am tired.) Soy cansado. (I am a tired person. My nature is to be tired)Estoy feliz. (Im happy now.) Soy feliz. (I am happy by nature. I am a happy person.)Est callada. (Shes being quiet.) Es callada. (Shes introverted. Shes naturally a quiet person.)No estoy lista. (Im not ready.) No soy lista. (Im not a quick thinker.) Another Approach to Ser vs. Estar Another way of thinking about the two verbs is to think of ser as being roughly equivalent to equals. Another approach is that estar often refers to a temporary condition, while ser frequently refers to a permanent condition. But there are exceptions. Among the major exceptions to the above way of thinking is that ser is used in expressions of time, such as Son las dos de la tarde for Its 2 p.m. Also, we use estar to indicate someone has died- quite a permanent condition: Est muerto, he is dead. Along that line, estar is used to indicate location. Estoy en casa. (I am at home.) But, soy de Mà ©xico. (I am from Mexico.) Ser, however, is used for the location of events: La boda es en Nuevo Hampshire. (The wedding is in New Hampshire.) There are also a few idiomatic expressions that simply need to be learned: La manzana es verde. (The apple is green.) La manzana est verde. (The apple is unripe.) Est muy bien la comida. (The meal tastes very good). Note that sometimes estar is often modified by an adverb such as bien rather than an adjective: Estoy bien. (Im fine.) Although rare, there are a few situations where you can use either ser or estar. A married man  describing his marital status could say either Soy casado or Estoy casado. He might be more likely to use soy because he considers being married as part of his identity, although he might use estoy to indicate that he had been married recently. Present Conjugation of Ser and Estar Both ser and estar are irregularly conjugated. Heres a chart of the indicative present tense: Pronombre Ser Estar Yo soy estoy Tà º eres ests Él, ella, usted es est Nosotros somos estamos Vosotros sois estis Ellos, ellas, ustedes son estn Sample Sentences Susana es atenta y con buena comunicacià ³n. (Susana is thoughtful with good communication skills. Ser is used with a personal quality.)Susana est atenta a la situacià ³n de su amiga. (Susana is attentive to her friends situation. Estar is being used to characterize behavior.)Roberto es nervioso como mi hermano. (Roberto is as nervous of a person as my brother is. Ser is used here for describing what kind of person someone is.)Roberto est tan nervioso como mi hermano. (Robert is as nervous as my brother is now. Estar is used for an emotional state that is independent of personal qualities.) Quick Takeaways Ser and estar are the two verbs most frequently used as the equivalent of the English to be.Ser typically is used in describing the nature of someone or something.Estar typically is used in referring to a state of being that isnt necessarily innate.

Multinational Companies and Global Human Resource Strategies Coursework

Multinational Companies and Global Human Resource Strategies - Coursework Example The expansion into new business environments across borders presents massive human resource challenges as a business must ensure cultural and managerial opportunity but also consider the needs of the new market. Various international human resource management and staffing policies have been developed to ensure that the internationalization and expansion programs are not affected. Coke Mexico has embraced a number of international staffing policies most of which were adopted from the pioneer years of their entry into the Mexican market. At coke Mexico, a mixture of different international staffing policies has been adopted to ensure smooth operation of the company and continuity of its culture and business practices. Such staffing policies include ethnocentric, polycentric, geocentric and regiocentric staffing approach all of which are governed by different principles. This paper will evaluate some of the staffing strategies that coke Mexico has adopted over the years and also review some of the available policies that it can be adapted to ensure continuity and smooth operations. The paper will also provide recommendations on the order of strategic preferences that the company can adapt based on the Mexican situation and business environment. The world has witnessed rapid internationalization and globalization over the last decade and this has been attributed to the search for new markets and global influence. The expansion of a business entity beyond the domestic boundary while maintaining the commitment to the local market calls for the adoption of complex business structures and strategies (Cooke, 2003). The effective management of human resources is one common determinant of internationalization success and the integration of foreign cultures into the operations of the  business.

How plants communicate Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

How plants communicate - Essay Example They adopt measures that control the resources in the environment, perceive themselves and distinguish between non-self and self thus enabling them to protect their territory. They would process the information and evaluate it and consequently modify their behaviour appropriately. These competencies indicate parallel communication processes in the body of plants, referred to as intraorganismic; between different and same species, referred to as interorganismic; and between plants and their non-plant counterparts, referred to as transorganismic (Witzany, 2010). Intraorganismic communication entails sign-mediated interactions between cells and within cells, referred to as intercellular and intracellular respectively. Intercellular communication processes particularly coordinate growth and development, dynamics and shape, allowing plants to differentially react to physiological influences and developmental status. Witzany and Baluska (2012) observe that finding meaning functions of sign alling molecules would be pegged on coherently investigating interactional patterns where signalling occurs. In these interactions, there would be active coordination and organization of various ordered steps conveyed by signs. These signs encompass a wide array of physical influences and chemical substances. According to Witzany (2010), these chemical molecules used as signs function as memory media, information carriers, messenger substances and signals. With different biotic and abiotic influences, there would be need for different behaviours which determine the set of signs in a given genera, family or species of plants and their production, combination and transportation. Therefore, different communicative processes would be executed with same chemical molecules thus optimizing energy cost. Foraging and Movement in Plants Plants are known to move in response to physical stimuli. Sensitive legumes would fold their leaflets when disturbed by insects with neighbouring leaves foldi ng up upon being wounded. Adler (2011) cites some tropical legumes which lower leaves during heavy but not light rains or alighting insects, a response that accelerates the drying up of the leaf surface. Carnivorous plants would rapidly catch insects and trigger hairs that would take up the meal. These responses in plants could be attributed to osmotic changes in the concentration of ions, action potentials, electrical signals and turgor, compared to actinmyosin system in animals. Through circumnutation, plant organs would undergo subtle movements at their elongation axes, explaining directed and conspicuous movement of plants in response to gravity, light and similar stimuli, thus capturing the required resources (Witzany 2006). Through morphological plasticity, plants efficiently forage for light. Karban (2008) observes that vertical shoots would branch more and elongate less in adequate lighting as opposed to those in limited light. Witzany (2010) further indicates that light tra nsmitted through leaves would have a lower red: far red than unfiltered illumination ratio. Roots would be more abundant in soils with higher nutrients in an attempt to increase the acquisition of resources. Bais, Park, Weir, Callaway, and Vivanco (2004) refer to the underground with densely populated roots which face competition for water, mineral nutrients and space from invading neighbouring root systems as the rhizosphere. Mating and Germination Other than acquisition for resources, plants’ reproductive behaviours show how they respond to environmental cues. Plants that do not get pollinated respond by increasing

The Europe history after 1st world war Research Paper

The Europe history after 1st world war - Research Paper Example During the 20th century there was sporadic social, cultural and economic change in Europe due to the industrial revolution that started in Britain during the 18th century and later spread to the whole world.The 2 world wars and a great economic depression controlled most of the first quarter of the 20th century2. The First World War was fought for 4 years, from the year 1914 to 1918. The war was fought between the entente powers that included the Belgium, France, Russia, Britain, Greece, Italy, Romania, and the United States of America against the Central powers which comprised of countries such as Germany, the Ottoman Empire, Austria, and Hungary3. The war claimed the lives of over 15 million civilians and military men. It is estimated that over 59 million military men were called to service during the war. Later on the great revolution in Russia destroyed the Transits Monarchy and replaced it with the Soviet Union. Additionally, the Ottoman Empire broke up forming separate nations and most of these nations had their boundaries re-drawn4. A treaty was written, known as the Treaty of Versailles. It marked the end of World War 1, but was harsh on the Germans, blaming them for the full responsibility of the war, hence imposed heavy sanctions on the country. High depts. Incurred in the First World War and loans given Germany caused great economic instability and havoc within Europe between the years 1920 to 1930. In the Soviet Union, people were dying of famine that had partly been contributed by Stalin’s regime. At the end of the 1st World War, the German economy suffered and this is because of the harsh conditions that were placed on it, by the treaty of Versailles, whose intention was to end the First World War. Hitler got into power in the year 1933, and begun his great campaign of building a great Germany. In the year 1929, the crash of Wall Street brought about the great depression that was experienced worldwide. Aided by elements such as

Classic Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Classic Literature - Essay Example ered around male characters, female characters are able to take on central roles as well and are frequently seen in positions of authority or importance even within the stories of the heroes. These themes, the importance of family and a different role for women than the traditional values of the Victorian age, can be traced through the works of three of the most popular Greek authors, Sophocles, Euripedes and Homer. In Oedipus the King by Sophocles, the action opens as Oedipus is approached by plague-stricken masses asking help from him as king. When he sees his people gathered around him as if he were a god, his response to them is paternalistic and godlike. His pride in his role is evident in the words he speaks in which he seems to be almost condescending to them for appealing to other forces than himself in their burning of incense to cloud the air. Throughout the remainder of the action, Oedipus’ personality clearly reflects a continued pride and a determination to maintain his family relationship within his nuclear unit as well as throughout his kingdom. A great deal of his story is actually predicated on an attempt to save his family. When Oedipus learned of his own prediction that he was doomed to kill his father and marry his mother, he was determined to avoid this fate by taking his future in his own hands. He left his homeland in Corinth for the further realm of Thebes. Howeve r, when he is able to solve the riddle of the Sphinx, a task that had not been accomplishable by anyone else, his natural pride in his own abilities rose to a new level. This pride is reinforced by the fact that he then became the king of Thebes and married Jocasta, the widowed queen of Thebes. Unfortunately, as it is discovered toward the end of the play, this widowed queen was the wife of the man Oedipus killed on the road, who turned out to be his own father. This made his wife his mother and himself the vile criminal he was seeking. After the disgrace he had

Included in the description Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Included in the description - Research Paper Example Also this exhibition was repeated in different cities in each country to different audiences and their reaction also recorded. Also the videos from each country were shown to the audiences from the other two countries and their responses also recorded. The outsider opinions were used to determine the cultural differences among pre-school learning processes in the three countries. This final video is a compilation of all those recordings. Constructivism Constructivism is a learning theory, which says that human beings make out meanings by way of the interaction between their behavioral characteristics and their experiences. This process is known to happen from infancy and hence constructivist approach in learning, puts at the pivotal point, child play. Child play is supposed to be the first step of cognitive development of an individual. Constructivist theory also suggests that there are two processes through which each individual makes meaning out of his/her experiences, namely, acco mmodation and assimilation. Assimilation is the process by which the child or individual absorbs certain new information and incorporates that into the pre-existing meaning structures in his/her mind. The new information just fits into the existing network. But in accommodation, the individual is confronted with a new meaning that is contradictory to his/her existing internal meaning structures. So the individual just reframes those structures so that the new information can be included without contradiction. The basic premise of this theory is the notion, learning by being actively involved in some activity. The constructivist approach demands active learners with care to be taken of the cultural background and individuality and also the role of teachers limited to being facilitators. The most constructivist classroom among the three is the Japanese classroom (Pre-school in Three Cultures). Here, the children are given the freedom to develop into active learners by blending their e xperiences with their own behavioral patterns. This is a major aspect of constructivist approach. The role of the teacher is very limited, again a constructivist theory-based approach. Even when a child misbehaves, he is not disciplined but is left with a choice to learn proper behavior from his fights with other kids (Pre-school in Three Cultures). The teaching method is solely activity based. In the morning, children exercise, then they are given interesting activities like coloring, and origami and during the playtime, they are left on their own to learn how to create friendship and handle difficult situations like a fight. In this manner, a totally free interaction of behavior and experience is facilitated which is the key concept in constructivist approach. By giving activity-based lessons, the children are motivated to find out their own potential. The situation in the school is a perfect balance between formal and informal learning so that there is optimal opportunity for cog nitive learning. The origami lessons are particularly helpful in motivating the children and also make them realize their hidden talent (Pre-school in Three Cultures). Whenever there is a problem for a child in doing an entrusted activity, individual attention is imparted to the child. This is also a practice in coherence with the principles of

Classic Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Classic Literature - Essay Example ered around male characters, female characters are able to take on central roles as well and are frequently seen in positions of authority or importance even within the stories of the heroes. These themes, the importance of family and a different role for women than the traditional values of the Victorian age, can be traced through the works of three of the most popular Greek authors, Sophocles, Euripedes and Homer. In Oedipus the King by Sophocles, the action opens as Oedipus is approached by plague-stricken masses asking help from him as king. When he sees his people gathered around him as if he were a god, his response to them is paternalistic and godlike. His pride in his role is evident in the words he speaks in which he seems to be almost condescending to them for appealing to other forces than himself in their burning of incense to cloud the air. Throughout the remainder of the action, Oedipus’ personality clearly reflects a continued pride and a determination to maintain his family relationship within his nuclear unit as well as throughout his kingdom. A great deal of his story is actually predicated on an attempt to save his family. When Oedipus learned of his own prediction that he was doomed to kill his father and marry his mother, he was determined to avoid this fate by taking his future in his own hands. He left his homeland in Corinth for the further realm of Thebes. Howeve r, when he is able to solve the riddle of the Sphinx, a task that had not been accomplishable by anyone else, his natural pride in his own abilities rose to a new level. This pride is reinforced by the fact that he then became the king of Thebes and married Jocasta, the widowed queen of Thebes. Unfortunately, as it is discovered toward the end of the play, this widowed queen was the wife of the man Oedipus killed on the road, who turned out to be his own father. This made his wife his mother and himself the vile criminal he was seeking. After the disgrace he had

Macroeconomics II Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Macroeconomics II - Essay Example Macroeconomics is the big picture of a country. The rate of inflation measured by the Consumer price index, Growth measured by the GDP rate, and the rate of unemployment, which denotes the country’s full employment potential. On the other hand, Microeconomics is study of the behavior of firms workers, markets and households. The primary goal of the government and the Bank of England is to keep inflation and unemployment as low as possible in the process of maximizing growth. To achieve this goal a monetary and fiscal policy is formulated. A monetary policy is the altering of lending rates to banks this in turn releases or curbs money supply in the financial market. An increase in the prime lending rate by the Bank of England to other banks pushes them to raise the interest paid on deposits to consumers and the interest on loan to borrowers. A fiscal policy is the change in the taxation structure and public spending. Public spending in other words is the government spending on defense, infrastructure and welfare schemes for the country. (Source:Mathew Bishop ’Economist’ Essentials of Economics, Macroeconomic policy.) Inflation is caused when demand for goods and services exceed supply or a rise in the price of oil, which most countries around the globe are facing right now. An increase in the prime lending rate will encourage saving, and discourage borrowing due to the high rate of interest on loans and in turn bring down consumption spending by giving the common person, lower disposable income, Therefore lower demand and this controls price rise. Now the reduction in consumption spending decreases the demand for goods and services, and businesses will cut cost as they worry about inventory pile up and future sales. This results in low wages and unemployment. So what do we do? What we see here is ironical. In the attempts to

Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation Pattern Essay Example for Free

Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation Pattern Essay It is ironic that Kapil Sibal declared at 125th Birth Anniversary celebrations of great Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan that exam-centric education system would have to go. One wonders what Ramanujan himself would say – â€Å"Mr. Minister, even I am a product of exam centric education system†? Kapil Sibal says he would like to replace the current system with a child-centric one. Now that is a very interesting term. So how does the minister define the term? Expressing his determination to do away with rote learning and the â€Å"archaic† examination-oriented system, he said: â€Å"We are endeavouring to reform this with emphasis on skill development and unlocking the creative talent within the child. † The Ministry’s decision to do away with examinations at the end of the year, replacing them with a Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation (CCE) system in a bid to de-stress children, was a step in that direction. [Link] Comprehensive and Continuous Evaluation has its benefits. It has to be, however, said that CCE will not de-stress the children all by itself. Students are under stress due to the range of competition. Imagine a candidate appearing for IIT JEE during +2. He faces at least 7 lakh others across the country. Imagine what goes on in the family, forget the candidate! Every IIT graduate has a story to tell as to how many sacrifices the complete family makes for success at the exam! CCE has its benefits and can de-stress the students but in an autonomous organization with tight controls within the organization. For example, some engineering colleges at graduate level and almost all of them at post-graudate level use it to the maximum benefit of both students and professors. The system is a success at these places because of the autonomy. JNTU implemented CCE in engineering colleges affiliated to it. It had limited impact and yet, it couldn’t do away with the final exam. The final exam had to cover 80% of the total score. CCE makes sense when the number of institutions involved is less. Another important factor that influences the impact of CCE is the physical proximity of affiliated institutions. Otherwise fraud and cheating would happen as the case is with JNTU’s example. Understanding the issue JNTU faced several issues with implementing CCE is more than 100 colleges in AP affiliated to it at the time of introduction of the system. They started with 80% external evaluation in the form of final comprehensive exam and 20% internal evaluation across the semester via 5 exams conducted by the instructor. Due to lack of feedback mechanism between students and the governing body – JNTU, the system led to several problems. There were cases of cheating and fraud. JNTU wanted to solve this problem by making internal evaluation â€Å"not so internal† through online objective evaluation. For this, an internal evaluation question bank was created through suggestions from all its professors, assistant professors, associate professors across the affiliated institutes. The online evaluation software would throw random questions on the screen to be answered in stipulated amount of time. This system again failed at several institutions due to infrastructure issues but the major problem was again cheating and fraud. The issue is quite clear – large educational bodies with centralized governing body cannot use CCE effectively. Effective use of CCE can happen with decentralized model. JNTU understood this and divided colleges between JNTU Hyderabad, JNTU Kakinada and JNTU Ananthapur. The division was purely based on physical proximity of the institute to the governing body. This system still faces the issues that it had initially. It will continue to face them. Take another example. IITs. For evaluating graduate students, IITs dont have a common examination across all the IITs! Even BITS Pilani which has its campuses in Pilani, Dubai, Goa and Hyderabad doesnt use CCE across all four via a common evaluation body. Closed loop within each campus is used. In fact in all these institutes, swift justice in case of any fraud/cheating via committees within the institutes ensures better evaluation, without hindering the process of education. The key phrase – â€Å"checks and balances†. One then wonders why such a tight loop cannot be framed within the schools or a set of schools within close physical proximity! What is happening now? In our current system of school education, we have CBSE at national level and as competing bodies we have State Education Boards. Schools are allowed to choose one of the bodies. The chosen body not just dictates syllabi but also evaluates students in a final examination with a common exam held on a common date at all affiliated schools. So by design CCE is missing. Private schools, so far bridged this gap by having internal evaluation which does not affect scoring at final exam but will only help students to be ready for the final evaluation. Government schools on the other hand, have been busy serving meals at noon to children rather than conducting classes regularly. All government education bodies across India have a common goal – syllabus. Core of the problem lies in this – skill development has never been the area of interest of these bodies. Skill development was and still is the school’s responsibility to compete with other schools. Students who make it top notch institutes across India via JEE, AIEEE, BITSAT etc. , generally have a set of skills in some area or the other. But it has to be understood that they do not make it there due to those skills. They acquire those skills at school, due to their own enthusiasm and sometimes due to the school’s stress on extra-curricular and co-curricular activities. Fortunately or unfortunately, skill development is not due to the governing body. Some exceptions do exist in places like Kerala though! In terms of the system of education, both geography and demography have a huge role to play. Before CCE Implementation†¦. Sibal’s megalomania and grandiose plans lack substance just because of one of his very fundamental assertion – centralization. For a country of the size of India, with such a large population, centralization of education is a disaster to start with. Decentralizing and allowing that little freedom to schools would be a very important step. Such a decentralization process must be addressed before CCE can be implemented. If we are supposed to get anything useful from implementation of CCE, what Governments at class X, +1, +2 level in Government Schools needs to Allow more freedom to schools to collaborate and spool resources – they are already in severe resource crunch. Leaving out examinations completely would be a recipe for disaster. As it is, drop out rates in Class X, +1, +2 across states like AP is too high. Any hasty introduction of CCE without first correcting some fundamental flaws in organizing schools would only bring about faster drop out rates at these levels. CCE is already available in an abstract way in private schools. Several aided and government schools tried to emulate it to see marginal success. But the issue remains. CCE it self will not reduce stress on students. In conclusion, CCE would make sense only with a proper mechanism to address drop-out rates at class X, +1, +2 levels across government schools in India. Acts proposed by Sibal like RTE only make it worse as they attack Private schools which have a decent CCE model already in place. Bottom line – leave private institutions alone. If possible allow them a % share of total evaluation points/score. Don’t scrap examinations, even if you introduce grading. Meanwhile, ensure Government and Aided school improve standards w. r. t infrastructure and faculty. Form conglomerates of schools within a certain radius and allow them to frame, organize and evaluate their students through proper resource spooling.

Hr going green- switch to paperless office

Hr going green- switch to paperless office Objectives Investigation into successful and failed implementations of the paperless office idea. To assess the cost savings for the HR department. How much can be saved? Will the costs outweigh the benefits? SWOT analysis of paperless office softwares. Analyse current practice HR Going Green- Switch to Paperless Office The term ‘paperless office, refers to an electronic documentation management environment which provides an alternative to the work flow and storage issues associated with paper files. It was initially used in 1975 as a concept of ‘The Office of the Future. At that time organizations were anticipating the scenario in near future where offices will transform into a complete paperless environment. It is important for the management practices in present millennium to recognize the potential of a paperless office and its future implications. Multinational organizations around the world now realize that the major differential factor in the global competitive world is the technology innovation. Since the advent of new millennium, this dream of a ‘paperless office is partially realized by the usage of electronic documentation systems. However the practice of electronic applications is not utilized to the full extent and more advanced document management soft-wares are requi red for office management (Sellen and Harper, 2001). Cost Effectiveness: One of the major duties of HR department is to identify practices which save organizations costs. With the implementation of a ‘paperless office, HR and finance department will experience a visible reduced cost of printing, mailing, storing and shipping documents. Therefore the companies operating in the modern corporate environment will consider paperless office implementation. Time will be saved, which is generally wasted for searching lost files. Accessing information independent of ones location and timing goes a long way in cutting the organizations costs (Farson, 1996). Bills and document generation will take less time. Departments can interact with each other by circulating e-memos. Officials can even operate from their homes if organizations develop satellite offices. In addition, the paperless office provides an opportunity for organization to realise some profit as the storage and retrieval of electronic documents is instantaneous. This is because; a substantial amoun t of time culminating into an average of $50 is lost where employees search for information from paper documents. Outsourcing is one aspect that has saved a number of organizations from crumbling. With numerous workloads coupled with deadlines that are to be met, the incorporation of a paperless office has been the saviour of institutions as it reduces operational costs as well as other fundamental resources while able to meet their target within the stipulated time. This opportunity has been made available with the inception and operation of the paperless office in most organizations (Muto Muraito, 1999). Soft wares available for processing data and information provide a variety of tools as input sources (Gordon, 1998, p. 199). An example of this is the Voice Recognition Software which has a voice recognition tool sensitive to ones voice. Information is thus effectively and easily processed saving on secretarial workload that translates into valuable time lost from typing. Typos errors are also minimised with the use of this tool. Document Management Software-SWOT Analysis: Strengths: They are less costly for HR than intensive labour management. Purchasing the available software for record entry, documentation as well as storage is cheaper. Furthermore, computers do not require intense supervision neither are they exposed to effects of huge workloads such as tiredness which is a common scenario in labour intensive institutions. They are able to process large amounts of data with little supervision thus cutting down on the number of employees while maintaining high quality and quantitative productivity (Ravens, 2002). These soft-wares efficiently and effectively manage e-documents. Such documents are easily processed, sent to and retrieved by individuals in need of them. This saves on paper as required documents such as forms can be filled electronically and sent to desired destinations. Such include; e -mails and e- memos (Alberto, 2007). They make sharing of files easy in organizations, better security of important document and proper maintenance of archives. Vital information lost in documents lost or misplaced due to poor handling by individuals is secured through available software. These soft wares are also able to copy information which can be easily accessed by various persons within the organization. Generates valuable office space. Renting office space has recently become an expensive undertaking. Designing mechanisms to generate valuable space has become a common trend by organizations with some opting to pull down walls. Embracing paperless office which is made available by various soft wares is one mechanism that organizations would use to address the aforementioned issue (Sellen and Harper, 2001). Weaknesses: The document management soft-wares may lack certain features which may not be applicable for all kinds of documents. Different documents require different features for both their development and usage. Without such features, it may be difficult to develop a specific format necessary for a specific type of document (Alberto, 2007). HR should realize that it is not possible to become totally ‘paperless. There may be some customers who will prefer ordering via memos. Attending to and satisfying a clients needs, are goals that play vital roles in the continuity of entities. To achieve this, an organization hence needs to be flexible in its approaches. Considering giving memos to some clients should therefore be taken into account. The collapse of backing system of files may result in the loss of important data. Machines are prone to collapse due to various reasons. This is inevitable therefore the only option left is to take advantage of alternative strategies such as back up. The back up system is still not a viable option as it may still be affected hence increasing the susceptibility of information to loss (Gordon, 1998, 205). Opportunities: These soft-wares are environmental friendly and can play a vital role in combating deforestation. Paperless office cuts down on the demand for paper which is mostly made available through deforestation. The effects of deforestation on the global environment have been adverse and consequently affected the survival of humans and other organisms on the planet. Reducing demand for paper is therefore a practical action towards reversing these effects with far reaching impacts on the survival of various species (Farson, 1996). The availability of optic fibre and satellite technologies would play fundamental roles in the paperless office industry. This would ease and fasten transmission of relevant documents to larger populations including those in remote locales. The fact that computing is taught in academic institutions is an encouragement. This would reduce training expenditures on new employees hence saving on costs. The new generation is also exposed to other electronic tools with computer features. This would play a big role in changing their perception of ‘super paper (Alberto, 2007). Currently, it is easier to obtain computers and soft wares due to the mushrooming of computer and software manufacturing industries in the world over. The initial capital of investing in these machines would therefore reduce owing to their increased supply. This would cater for large institutions with a high turnover of employees as most or all would be able to access computers for their needed functions (Muto Maurito, 1999). Sharing ideas through e-mails and e-memos is one aspect that would contribute to the growth of organizations. The implementation of laws and regulations on digitized information is a stepping stone towards increased adoption of the paperless office. This is supported by the Implementation of the Government Paperwork Elimination Act in the United States (Alan, 2003). Threats Increased manufacturing of upgraded computers which replace obsolete ones result in increase in e-waste. Little research has been done on disposal mechanisms of this non-degradable waste which would further affect the state of the environment. The human perception on paper. Despite reducing the utility of paper, most individuals still perceive the legality of paper documents. This is due to the fact that features such as original signatures define the legality of certain documents. Computer hacking and the effects of computer related viruses are setbacks of the paperless office. These contribute to increased vulnerability of documents to loss as well as reduced confidentiality of information (Weighright, 2000, pp.6-10). In order to analyse the current scenario, Canada is taken as one of the case studies. Despite most Canadians thinking green, working green has been a bitter pill to swallow. From a recent survey, paperless workplace to them is still pulp fiction. Workers print on average 30 copies, with approximately 10 pages (39%) finding their way to the waste bin. In addition, their printing habits were surveyed and shown to have increased over the past five years. Notably, workplace printing accounted for all printing activity despite the availability of technological tools that emphasize on use and storage of digital data. The ‘blue bin paper recycling program was a common policy in most companies. However, encouraging information from the survey shows that most firms were concerned about the impact of their practices on the environment and thus practices such as using electronic versions of documents were employed by companies (Ravens, 2002). In the United States, the courts of Utah are currently adopting the paperless office for purposes of storing vital information, increasing the accessibility to information including those remotely stored and saving on space (Alan, 2003). Hospitals have also embraced this following the adoption of the Health Information Systems to assist both the staff and patients. To ensure that this is successfully achieved, organizational structural changes, leadership, training and technical support, and usability have been the main focal points of these institutions. The Paperless Office despite being compared to the resource use paradox is an achievable option that would result in a complete overhaul of the negative effects of the use of paper. This however requires the incorporation of time as well as a change in the perception and behavioural patterns of people regarding the use of paper (Gordon, 1998, p.209). As evidenced from the above information, the accruing benefits far outweigh the pitfalls. References Sellen, A., Harper, R. (2001). The Myth of Paperless Offices. Boston: MIT Press. Alan, A. (2003). Utah Courts: towards paperless. USA: Sage. Alberto, B. (2007). Desktop Publishing: things not taught. London: McMillan Publishers. Farson, T. (1996). Progressive Technological Applications. London: Oxford University Press. Gordon, C. (1998). Paperless Office. Aslib Proceedings, 39, 197-210. Muto, P., Maurito, P. (1999). Computer Screens: the paperless office. London: Penguin. Ravens, K. (2002). Managing the Absurd. USA: McGraw Hill. Weighright, J. (2000). The Design, Implementation and Impact of Office Automation. Personnel Review, 13, 2-12

Software Patents in Western Europe :: Software Technology Patent Paperes

Software Patents in Western Europe Introduction The world is becoming smaller and smaller. It’s a catch-line clichà © anyone who is familiar with the internet has heard a thousand times. Email provides nearly instant communication across the globe, massive files containing every imaginable piece of information are transmitted in the blink of an eye, and the World Wide Web makes it all accessible to the common individual with moderate computer skills. There is no denying it, just like the IBM slogan, the internet has changed the way the world does business. One key to doing business is the patent. Meant to reward and encourage innovation, the patent gives the creator of an idea or invention a temporary monopoly on their product. This grants small businesses a foothold in a market that would otherwise be dominated by giant corporations. Thus patents give life to competition, the cornerstone of capitalism. However, with the advent of the computer industry the issue of patenting software programs has become an intense debate. These intangible sequences of ones and zeros are coveted like gold and in some cases are the very livelihood of numerous businesses. The State of Affairs in Western Europe There are two camps in Europe battling out the issue of software patents. On one side we have â€Å"Brussels technocrats and technology giants such as Microsoft, SAP, and Nokia, all of which insist that Europe must do more to protect intellectual property or risk compromising its global competitiveness.†1 The basic argument of this side is that patents are necessary if Europe wants to compete with U.S. and Chinese innovation. On the other side of the debate there is â€Å"an army of economists, left-leaning politicians, and programmers such as Linux creator Linus Torvalds†1 who present the argument that â€Å"software patents are a creativity-crushing weapon wielded by multinationals to bash [startups].†1 The open-source community, which produces software without patents for all people to use, is particularly strong in Europe. It is their opinion that software patents put programs under lock and key and they would like to see Europe reject software patents c ompletely. For the past two years the European Union has been working to stiffen its existing patent laws while balancing the sometimes conflicting requirements of its 15 members. However, the process was upended in September when â€Å"the European Parliament -- under heavy last-minute lobbying by open-source advocates -- unexpectedly approved a draft law that effectively banned all software patents.

A note on Porter’s Five Forces Model Essay

a) Rivalry between established competitors What are the major factors determining the nature and intensity of competition between established firms? Concentration In general, the fewer the number of firms in an industry, the easier is coordination of pricing behaviour, and the smaller the chance that one firm will initiate aggressive price competition An industry dominated by a single firm displays little competition and the dominant firm can exercise considerable discretion over the prices it charges. Diversity of competitors The ability of the firms in an industry to avoid competition depends not only upon the number of firms but also on their similarities in terms of objectives, costs, strategies. Example: Oil suppliers in OPEC: they were aligned in the 70’s and prices rose up. They were disaligned in the 80’s and prices decreased Product differentiation The more similar the offerings of rival firms, the more willing are customers to move from one supplier to the other. Where products are indistinguishable, the product is a commodity and the sole basis for competition is price Example of commodities: Raw materials : crude oil, gold bullions; Some finished products: DRAM chips, US Treasury bills Excess capacity and exit barriers The propensity of firms in an industry to resort to aggressive price competition depends upon the balance between capacity and output. The presence of unused capacity encourages firms to compete for additional business in order to spread fixed costs over a greater sales volume. Excess capacity may be the result of declining market demand or cyclical market demand or overinvestment. The period during which excess capacity overhangs an industry depends on the ease with which firms and resources can leave the industry. Costs and other impediments to leaving an industry are â€Å"barriers to exit†. Barriers to exit may be substantial where resources are durable and specialized, or where employees are entitled to job protection Example: Closure of mines in the 80s in Western countries were difficult as miners were heavily unionized Cost condition: economies of scale and the ratio of fixed to variable costs The more important the economies of scale are, the greater are the incentives for expanding sales at the expense of competitors. The higher the ratio of fixed to variable costs, the greater the willingness of firms to reduce prices in order to utilize spare capacity Example: This is typically the case in petrochemicals, tires, steel. b) Threat of entry If an industry is earning a return on invested capital in excess of the cost of capital, that industry will act as a magnet to firms outside the industry. An industry where no barriers to entry or exit exist is contestable. However in most industries, new entrants cannot enter on equal terms to those of established firms. The size of the advantage of established over entrant firms measures the height of barriers to entry, which determines the extent to which an industry can in the long term enjoy profits The principal barriers to entry are: Capital requirements Example: Exxon in the 80s spent almost $1 Billion in a vain attempt to catch up with existing players and become a player in the office computer systems market Economies of scale In some industries, particularly those which are capital intensive or research intensive, efficiency requires producing at a very large scale. New entrants are faced with the choice of entering either on a small scale and accepting high unit costs, or a large scale and running the risk of drastic under utilization of capacity while they build up sales volume Example: Commercial jet engines for commercial airliners: Big economies of scale, thus only 3 players [General Electric/Snecma; Pratt and Whitney; Rolls Royce] Absolute cost advantages Such advantages are usually associated with â€Å"first mover advantages†: by being early into the industry the established firms may have been able to acquire low cost sources of raw materials and by being longer they benefit from economies of learning. Example: in petroleum: ownership of oil fields prevents any second mover Product differentiation In an industry where products are differentiated, established firms possess an advantage over new entrants by virtue of brand recognition and customer loyalty. New entrants must spend heavily on advertising and promotion to gain similar levels of brand awareness, or accept a small market share which can be gradually expanded Example: Auditing, advertising, investment banking: established reputations and relationships are entry barriers Access to channels of distribution This barrier to entry is due to the distributors’s preference for established firms’ products: Limited capacity within distribution(eg shelf space), risk aversion, and fixed costs associated with carrying an additional product result in distributors’ reluctance to carry a new manufacturer’ product Exemple : Ice cream storage in small outlets Governmental and legal barriers Several barriers: Granting of a license by a public authority Examples: Taxi-cab services, broadcasting In knowledge intensive industries: patents, copyrights and trade secrets Procurement regulation: the costs of becoming listed as an â€Å"approved supplier† are a barrier Environmental and safety standards: the costs of compliance weigh more heavily on newcomers Retaliation The effectiveness of all these barriers to entry in excluding potential entrants depends upon the entrants’ expectations as to possible retaliation by established firms. Example of retaliation: Aggressive price-cutting, increased advertising, or legal maneuvers c) Competition from substitutes When there are few substitutes for a product, customers willing to pay a potentially high price In micro economic terms, demand is inelastic to price Examples: Gasoline; Cigarettes If there are close substitutes for a product, then there is a limit to the price customers are willing to pay and any increase in price will cause some customers to switch towards substitutes In micro economic terms, demand is elastic with respect to price. Example: frozen foods versus canned food and fresh produce The extent to which the threat of substitutes is high depends upon two factors: The propensity/willingness of buyers to substitutes Example: Efforts by city planners to relieve traffic congestion either by charging the motorist or by subsidizing public transport have been ineffective in the US in encouraging motorists to forsake their cars for buses The price performance characteristics of substitutes (ie the relative performance of alternative products in relation to their price) If two products meet the same customer needs and one performs better than the other across all criteria, the price of the superior products determines the maximum price for the inferior product  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ example: batteries of identical size and voltage: the one with the shorter life expectancy will only sell if it undercuts the price of the longer-life battery Where products are meeting more complex needs and no product dominates all performance dimensions, a niche position in the market may be sustainable despite premium pricing Example: Harley Davidson : inferior speed, acceleration, technical sophistication than Japanese motorcycles, but priced higher Difficulty in perceiving performance differences can also inhibit substitution on the basis of price Example: The subjective nature of flagrance makes comparison difficult for the consumer. Direct copies (same ingredients!) of popular perfumes at less than half the price have not gained substantial market share d) Bargaining power of buyers Firms operate in two markets: the market for inputs (raw materials, components, finance, labor services) and for outputs (products and services sold to customers – be distributors, consumers or other manufacturers). In both markets the relative profitability of the two parties to a transaction depends upon relative economic power. Two factors are important in determining the strength of buying power Buyers’price sensitivity Some key points on buyers’price sensitivity: 1) It depends on the importance of the item as a proportion of their total cost Example: For food processing companies, metal cans are one of the largest single items in their purchase of materials. These companies are highly sensitive to the prices of metal cans 2) The less differentiated are the products of the supplying industry, the more willing is the buyer to switch suppliers based on the basis of price Example: Supermarket chains can switch suppliers of packaged white breads 3) The greater the competition between buyers, the lower their profit margins, the greater their eagerness to achieve price reductions from their sellers Example: Automobile manufacturers place high pressures on their component suppliers 4) The greater the importance of the sold product to the quality of the buyer’s product or service, the less sensitive are buyers to the prices they are charged Example: PC vendors had to accept Microsoft’s Software prices Relative bargaining power Bargaining power rests ultimately upon refusal to deal with the other party. The balance of power between the two parties to a transaction depends on the credibility and effectiveness with which each makes this threat. Key determinants of the relative bargaining power: – the relative costs which each party sustains as a result of the transaction not being consummated – the expertise of each party in leveraging its position through gamesmanship 3 factors are likely to be important in determining the bargaining power of buyers relative to that of sellers: 1) Size and concentration of buyers relative to suppliers The smaller the number of suppliers, the less easy is it for a supplier to find alternative customers if one is lost. The bigger the purchases of the customer, the greater is the damage from losing the customer. The larger the size of the buyer relative to the supplier, the better able is the buyer to withstand any financial losses arising from failure to reach  agreement. Example: Buying consortiums are created to pool orders 2) Buyer’s information The first essential for the exercise of bargaining power by buyers is that they are able to compare the prices and qualities of different suppliers’ products or services. Examples: Lawyers, doctors, traders in the bazaars of Istanbul do not display the prices they charge Note that knowledge of price is of little value if the characteristics of a product or service are not easily ascertained before purchase Example: It is difficult to assess beforehand the value of investment advices, management consulting (or baldness treatment!)

Risk Factors of Energy Industry

RISK FACTORS ASSOCIATED 1) Existing electric utility industry regulations, and changes to regulations, may present technical, regulatory and economic barriers to the purchase and use of solar energy systems that may significantly reduce demand for your solar energy systems. 2) The expiration, elimination or reduction of these rebates, credits and incentives would adversely impact your business. ) If the Internal Revenue Service or the Treasury Department makes additional determinations that the fair market value of your solar energy systems is materially low your than what you have claimed, you may have to pay significant amounts to your investment funds or to your fund investors and such determinations could have a material adverse effect on your business, financial condition and prospects. 4) Your ability to provide solar energy systems to customers on an economically viable basis depends on your ability to finance these systems with fund investors who require particular tax and ot her benefits. ) You need to enter into additional substantial financing arrangements to facilitate your customers’ access to your solar energy systems, and if this financing is not available to you on acceptable terms, if and when needed, your ability to continue to grow your business would be materially adversely impacted. 6) A material drop in the retail price of utility-generated electricity or electricity from other sources would harm your business, financial condition and results of operations. 7) A material drop in the retail price of utility-generated electricity would particularly adversely impact your ability to attract commercial customers. ) Rising interest rates could adversely impact your business. 9) You must have guaranteed a minimum return to be received by an investor in certain of your investment funds and could be adversely affected if you are required to make any payments under those guarantees. 10) In your lease pass-through investment funds, there is a o ne-time reset of the lease payments, and you may be obligated, in connection with the resetting of the lease payments at true up, to refund lease prepayments or to contribute additional assets to the extent the system sizes, costs, and timing are not consistent with the initial lease payment model. 1) You are not currently regulated as a utility under applicable law, but you may be subject to regulation as a utility in the future. 12) A failure to hire and retain a sufficient number of employees in key functions would constrain your growth and your ability to timely complete your customers’ projects. 13) It is difficult to evaluate your business and prospects due to your limited operating history. 14) If you incur losses then it will be difficult for you to achieve or sustain profitability in the future. 5) You face competition from both traditional energy companies and renewable energy companies. 16) If you fail to remediate deficiencies in your control environment or are un able to implement and maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in the future, the accuracy and timeliness of your financial reporting may be adversely affected. 17) Projects for your significant commercial or government customers involve concentrated project risks that may cause significant changes in your financial results. 8) You depend on a limited number of suppliers of solar panels and other system components to adequately meet anticipated demand for your solar energy systems. Any shortage, delay or component price change from these suppliers could result in sales and installation delays, cancellations and loss of market share. 19) Your business benefits from the declining cost of solar panels, and your financial results would be harmed if this trend reversed or did not continue. 0) You act as the licensed general contractor for your customers and are subject to risks associated with construction, cost overruns, delays, regulatory compliance and other contin gencies, any of which could have a material adverse effect on your business and results of operations. 21) Compliance with occupational safety and health requirements and best practices can be costly, and noncompliance with such requirements may result in potentially significant monetary penalties, operational delays and adverse publicity. 2) Problems with product quality or performance may cause you to incur warranty expenses and performance guarantee expenses, may lower the residual value of your solar energy systems and may damage your market reputation and cause your financial results to decline. 23) Product liability claims against you could result in adverse publicity and potentially significant monetary damages. 24) Damage to your brand and reputation would harm your business and results of operations. 25) If you fail to manage your recent and future growth effectively, you may be unable to execute your business plan, aintain high levels of customer service or adequately addr ess competitive challenges. 26) You may not be successful in leveraging your customer base to grow your business through sales of other energy products and services. 27) Your growth depends in part on the success of your strategic relationships with third parties. 28) The loss of one or more members of your senior management or key employees may adversely affect your ability to implement your strategy. 29) Your business may be harmed if you fail to properly protect your intellectual property. 0) The production and installation of solar energy systems depends heavily on suitable meteorological conditions. If meteorological conditions are unexpectedly unfavorable, the electricity production from your solar energy systems may be substantially below your expectations and your ability to timely deploy new systems may be adversely impacted. 31) You typically bear the risk of loss and the cost of maintenance and repair on solar systems that are owned or leased by your fund investors. 2) An y unauthorized disclosure or theft of personal information you gather, store and use could harm your reputation and subject you to claims or litigation. 33) In the long term if you intend to expand your international activities, which will subject you to a number of risks. Your long-term strategic plans include international expansion, and you intend to sell your solar energy products and services in international markets. Risks inherent to international operations include the following: | ? | Â  | inability to work successfully with third parties with local expertise to co-develop international projects; | ? | Â  | multiple, conflicting and changing laws and regulations, including export and import restrictions, tax laws and regulations, environmental regulations, labor laws and other government requirements, approvals, permits and licenses; | | ? | Â  | changes in general economic and political conditions in the countries where you operate, including changes in government ince ntives relating to power generation and solar electricity; | | ? | Â  | political and economic instability, including wars, acts of terrorism, political unrest, boycotts, curtailments of trade and other business restrictions; | ? | Â  | difficulties and costs in recruiting and retaining individuals skilled in international business operations; | | ? | Â  | international business practices that may conflict with Indian customs or legal requirements; | | ? | Â  | financial risks, such as longer sales and payment cycles and greater difficulty collecting accounts receivable; | | ? | Â  | fluctuations in currency exchange rates relative to the Indian Rupee; and | | ? | Â  | inability to obtain, maintain or enforce intellectual property rights, including inability to apply for or register material trademarks in foreign countries. |

One scene one and two of the play? Essay

   Another place where Shakespeare has provided the ability to modify mood, is during 1:2 : Anne: ‘And thou unfit for anyplace but hell! ‘ Richard: ‘Yes, one place else, if you let me name it. ‘ Anne: ‘Some dungeon’. Richard: ‘Your bed-chamber’ (lines 109 – 112 inclusive) Shakespeare is creating a new mood on the stage by the event order. He has written it in such a way that the audience can become intrigued by what has happened, and feel characters emotions themselves. He manages to alter mood on stage with just a single sentence if need be. For example, during lines 1 : ii : 109 – 112 Shakespeare has changed the mood from arguing, distraught and anger to a small period of humour. Also in giving him different roles, Richard can succeed in his plans, and manipulate Anne. Richard plays with Anne’s emotions and can be persuasive by flattering her greatly. He is also manipulative to Clarence: †Tis not the King that sends you to the tower My Lady Grey his wife, Clarence – ’tis she’ (lines 63 + 64) Richard is turning Clarence against the queen. He wants to be the last person Clarence suspects of sending him to tower. Shakespeare has written a lot of parts in the play incredibly skilfully and used a personal style of writing (Similar techniques are used throughout his plays, and are notable here. They were especially unique to him). Richard has one last word with Clarence, and promises to get him released. Act One scene two opens with Lady Anne standing next to King Henry VI’s coffin, who was her father in law, but was murdered by Richard before the play started. Anne speaks a long soliloquy of similar length to that of Richard’s at the beginning of the play while weeping. ‘Cursed be the hands that caused these fatal holes! Cursed the heart that had the heart to do it! Cursed the blood that let this blood from hence! ‘ (line 14 – 16 inclusive) Anne is distraught with what has happened and screams upon the murderer. When she curses the blood, she is referring to Richard’s family as a whole, and the rest of the curses, are for Richard himself. It is a very important part in the soliloquy and adds mood to the speech. Shakespeare also uses repetition and imagery to great effect. The audience can really feel strong emotions spoken by characters. Anne says the word ‘wounds’ many times referring to the gashes in King Henry’s body. At one point Anne uses the word windows instead of wounds. This is a simile where she is saying that she is looking into the gashes. She feels that by looking through what are the windows of King Henry, she is looking into the truth behind his murder. Richard enters the scene, and Anne compares him to the devil. Shakespeare shows Richard as a strong, confident, brave man at this point. He is not affected by those he has hurt. ‘O, gentlemen, see, see! Dead Henry’s wounds Open their congealed mouths and bleed afresh! Blush, blush, thou lump of deformity, For ’tis thy presence that exhales this blood† (line 65 – 68 inclusive) Shakespeare creates another play on words, where Richard questions Anne’s foul mouth and she replies exclaiming that he is a villain. Richard introduces compliments, comparing Anne to an angel and she responds consistently with insults. Richard tells Anne to take up his sword and to kill him for his crimes, but she cannot kill him. He says to her: ‘Take up the sword again, or take up me. ‘ (line 184) Despite her prejudice against him, Anne is slowly won over by his pleas and agrees to marry him. Richard’s supreme skill in the art of insincere flattery has won him Anne. When she leaves the stage, Richard feels triumphent about his success in wooing her, but reveals that he will soon be rid of her. In this soliloquy, he reflects back on his evil actions as well as how well everything is going. Shakespeare has revealed to the audience that he can be incredibly persuasive and manipulative that he has succeeded in his task, and is becoming very evil. Shakespeare’s plays were of course not intended to be historically accurate but were designed for entertainment and maximum dramatic affect. In Richard III Shakespeare alters, and adds to the audience’s perception and opinion of Richard using language and by changing historical facts. Richard III has always been one of his most popular plays and, since its earliest performances, great actors have leaped at the chance to play the scheming murderous tyrant. Throughout the play, Richard and many others, call attention to what he himself terms his ‘deformity’. In Shakespearean times, people believed that being ugly was a reflection of a sinful evil nature, or perhaps a punishment for past wrong doings. Richard III didn’t actually have a hunchback or withered arm. But this is not the only historical reference that has been changed. Shakespeare compresses time to suit the play’s performance. To achieve dramatic intensity he made all kinds of alterations and additions. For example, Henry VI’s funeral actually occurred seven years before Clarence’s imprisonment; and Shakespeare invented Richard’s wooing of Anne. Condensing time, and changing details helps the play to ‘flow’. It provides a smoother front to the story, and also allows Shakespeare to write as he pleases. Language was another key ingredient which Shakespeare used to give Richard different personas at different times in the play. Most commonly: during 1:i and 1:ii, Richard could appear to be two different types of people, the villain, or the hero. He uses many metaphors and similes in his plays as they are often clever comparisons or a good way of revealing character’s emotions and events. Word play, and special uses of language including dramatic irony, and dramatic intensity were used. Using cleverly laid out language Shakespeare could easily alter moods and opinions of characters in the play. In this way, Shakespeare has successfully shaped the audience’s perception of Richard which also alters their perceptions of the play itself. Henry Hayhurst-France Coursework Essay: Richard III 10B Draft Version Show preview only The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our GCSE Richard III section.